"You can't dwell on it," he said. "You get another chance at it this weekend. The only thing you can do is bounce back from it."

But he didn't talk to the fans. They were dwelling on it.

A three-and-out the first time the Texans had the ball didn't seem like bouncing back.

Who can blame Texans fans? After suffering through a 2-14 season in 2013, they expected a new start with a new quarterback and a virtually new coaching staff and, instead, they got 32-0.

In retrospect, most of us who weren't on the field in Arizona placed too much emphasis on an opening preseason game. But considering the Texans' abysmal performance, it seemed even more important they make amends against the Atlanta Falcons, and they did, winning 32-7.

One co-host of a pregame radio show said it seemed almost like a "do-or-die" game.

Coach Bill O'Brien apparently wasn't listening.

Although linebacker Brian Cushing, recovering from a severe knee injury for the second time in two years, returned to the practice field last week, he wasn't expected to play.

Johnson and Foster, who also missed much of training camp with hamstring injuries, seemed more likely to be in uniform, but it wasn't particularly surprising when they weren't.

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Same for cornerback Johnathan Joseph, who has an undisclosed injury, perhaps related to a hamstring.

But J.J. Watt didn't play. Neither did left tackle Duane Brown nor center Chris Myers. Tyler Clabo started at right tackle, James Ferentz at center. Left tackle? Derek Newton. Really.

What did O'Brien think this was, an exhibition game?

Love ya Blue

The coach at least played No. 1 draft choice Jadeveon Clowney for two series.

Clowney single-handedly turned the boos into cheers on the Falcons' second possession, making a jarring tackle for a 2-yard loss on running back Antone Smith on a second-down play, then sacking quarterback Matt Ryan for a 7-yard loss.

The Texans, who never reached the red zone against the Cardinals, then drove 69 yards for, imagine this, a touchdown.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, he of the 14.6 passer rating in the opener, completed three of five passes on the drive for 33 yards. More importantly, the Texans, so inefficient on third down in the opener, converted on third-and-8 from the Atlanta 24 when Fitzpatrick scrambled for 10 yards.

Rookie running back Alfred Blue, quickly becoming a fan favorite, took it from there, gaining the remaining 14 yards on two carries for the score.

Then, just as everyone was warming up to Fitzpatrick, O'Brien replaced him to start the second quarter with rookie Tom Savage.

So that was it. The Texans' first team had come alive, and O'Brien had seen enough.

But wait. Given the opportunity after the Falcons tied the game to see if his first-team offense could finish a two-minute drive better than it had the previous Saturday, when Fitzpatrick threw his second interception, O'Brien went back to his starter.

Fitzpatrick responded by driving the Texans 74 yards on seven plays in 1:13, passing 8 yards to DeVier Posey for a touchdown with 19 seconds remaining before halftime.

The third quarter started with Case Keenum at quarterback for the Texans.

So this really was just a glorified practice. We call it glorified so fans who paid to see the game in person won't feel so badly about the real ticket prices.

All about getting better

O'Brien had warned it would be like this, that while everyone around him seemed to be losing their heads last week, he wasn't losing his.

He watched the Texans practice against the Falcons two days last week. He watched the Texans practice against them again Saturday night.

Asked last week how he balanced his need to learn more about his team as opposed to pressure from media and fans to unveil a contender, even in the preseason, O'Brien said, "I don't know anything about contending for this or that. What we need to do as a football team is make sure we go out there every day with the intention of getting better.

"Getting better as a team, getting better situationally, getting better individually, getting better as a unit, fixing mistakes we've been making. We don't talk about things (like contending). We focus on the things we can control every day when Sept. 7 rolls around."

That, in case you don't know, is the day the Texans open the regular season.